Osinbajo's aide beats up journalist at the villa

Security aides of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo beat up Abayomi Adeshida, a photojournalist with Vanguard, on Thursday, November 7, 2019, according to a report in TheCable.

The report states that the incident occurred at the banquet hall of the presidential villa in Abuja where the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), chaired by Abike Dabiri-Erewa, was holding a summit.

According to the story, Adeshida was taking photos of the vice president at the exhibition stand when operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) pounced on him as Osinbajo was being presented with a copy of a magazine as a souvenir.

Narrating his ordeal, Adeshida said he was not told what his offence was. He also said he did not do anything out of the ordinary to warrant the pummeling that became his lot.

Adeshida said the operatives damaged his camera and that he was dragged on the floor right in the presence of the vice-president.

“I was shocked when these DSS operatives started beating me for no reason. They tore off my Presidential Villa accreditation tag on the shirt and dragged me on the floor while hitting me and kicking me,” he said.

DSS officials (Photo used for illustrative purposes only) ece-auto-gen

“I believe they would have done much worse if not for the intervention of the vice-president’s aide-de-camp (ADC), who I noticed was making hand movements for them to leave me alone.

“I am feeling pains all over my body and a particular severe pain on my right leg on which I don’t even know what they hit me with.”

'He pushed the security man first '

However, Twitter user and journalist, Theresa Tekenah, shared that it was the journalist who threw the first fist.

"I give up on Nigeria media. Most of these journalist are evil, liars and heartless. The journalist was the first to push the security man when he was trying to tell him to allow others have space to take shots of the VP. It happened right in front of me.

"I am also a journalist. Reporting lies is not one of the ethics of journalism," she wrote on the micro-blogging platform.

Pulse will update this story with reactions from the presidency when we have them.